Marguerite Eymery, La Marquise de Sade

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Rachilde’s novel

La Marquise de Sade

was first published towards the end of 1886, although printed editions provide a publication year of 1887. Emblazoned with a deliberately provocative title, and displaying a panoply of

fin-de-siècle

tropes and themes, this novel further secured Rachilde’s status as Queen of the Decadents, and fanned the flames of infamy already attracted by the publication of

Monsieur Vénus

in 1884. However,

La Marquise de Sade

is more than just a reliquary of Decadence, since its unique blend of form, style, and shifting perspectives offer the reader and critic more nuanced, if often contradictory, visions of the very movement the work purportedly represents.

The plot of La Marquise de Sade centres on the childhood, adolescence, and early adulthood of the

1579 words

Citation: Craske, Helen. "La Marquise de Sade". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 26 July 2017 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=22088, accessed 28 March 2024.]

22088 La Marquise de Sade 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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